HARRISBURG – Citing the need for permanent solutions to PA’s ongoing housing crisis, Lancaster County Rep. Ismail Smith-Wade-El and Philadelphia County Sen. Nikil Saval are introducing The Shelter First Act – legislation to prevent the criminalization of homelessness in PA by requiring municipalities to provide adequate indoor spaces for homeless people before enforcing any ordinance that would criminalize living outside. Smith-Wade-El said his measure is a rejection of the criminalization of the unhoused which condemns those experiencing homelessness to an endless cycle of heavy fines, arrests, and incarceration, perpetuating their poverty. We must recognize everyone’s innate human dignity and ensure that every Pennsylvanian’s right to a place to sleep is protected. The Shelter First Act has been introduced in the PA House as House Bill 2028 and in the PA Senate as Senate Bill 1089.
